Antimicrobial constituents from the flowers of Trollius chinensis

A Comprehensive Research Review of Herbal Textual Research, Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, Traditional Uses, Clinical Application, Safety Evaluation, and Quality Control of Trollius chinensis Bunge

Trollius chinensis Bunge (TCB) is a perennial plant of the Ranunculaceae family with medicinal and edible values. It is widely distributed and commonly used in various regions, including Asia, Europe, and North America. The main chemical components of TCB include alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolic acids, and volatile oil compounds. TCB is renowned for its anti-inflammatory, heat-clearing, detoxifying, and eyesight-improving properties. Its dried flowers are commonly used as a traditional Chinese medicine indicated for the treatment of upper respiratory tract infections, chronic tonsillitis, pharyngitis, influenza, and bronchitis. Modern pharmacology has demonstrated the anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antihypertensive, and antioxidant effects of TCB. This study presents a comprehensive overview of various aspects of TCB, including herbal textual research, botany, phytochemistry, pharmacology, traditional uses, clinical application, and quality control, aiming to provide new ideas on the scientific application of TCB as well as the integration of modern research with traditional medicinal uses.

Trollius chinensis Bunge: A Comprehensive Review of Research on Botany, Materia Medica, Ethnopharmacological Use, Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, and Quality Control

Trollius chinensis Bunge, a perennial herb belonging to the Ranunculaceae family, has been extensively used in traditional Chinese medicine. Documented in the Supplements to the Compendium of Materia Medica, its medicinal properties encompass a spectrum of applications, including heat clearance, detoxification, alleviation of oral/throat sores, earaches, eye pain, cold-induced fever, and vision improvement. Furthermore, T. chinensis is used in clinical settings to treat upper respiratory infections, pharyngitis, tonsillitis, esoenteritis, canker, bronchitis, etc. It is mainly used to treat inflammation, such as inflammation of the upper respiratory tract and nasal mucosa. This comprehensive review explores the evolving scientific understanding of T. chinensis, covering facets of botany, materia medica, ethnopharmacological use, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and quality control. In particular, the chemical constituents and pharmacological research are reviewed. Polyphenols, mainly flavonoids and phenolic acids, are highly abundant among T. chinensis and are responsible for antiviral, antimicrobial, and antioxidant activities. The flower additionally harbors trace amounts of volatile oil, polysaccharides, and other bioactive compounds. The active ingredients of the flower have fewer side effects, and it is used in children because of its minimal side effects, which has great research potential. These findings validate the traditional uses of T. chinensis and lay the groundwork for further scientific exploration. The sources utilized in this study encompass Web of Science, Pubmed, CNKI site, classic monographs, Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Chinese Medicine Dictionary, and doctoral and master's theses.

Evaluation of total phenol and flavonoid content and antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities of Trollius chinensis Bunge extracts on Streptococcus mutans

Dental caries is a chronic disease with multiple bacterial infections, Streptococcus mutans is the main cariogenic bacteria. Trollius chinensis Bunge is a common folk medicine in the Xinjiang area of China. In this study, we investigated the total flavonoid content and total phenol content in four types of T. chinensis Bunge extracts and the inhibitory effects of these extracts on S. mutans. Agar diffusion method was used to measure the inhibition zone diameters, and the minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration were determined by the twofold dilution method. Water extracts from T. chinensis Bunge and ethanol (30, 60, and 90%) extracts at different concentrations could significantly inhibit the growth of S. mutans. Among them, 30% ethanol extract exhibited the best antibacterial and antibiofilms effect. Biofilm research (crystal violet staining and CLSM) showed that 30% ethanol extract of T. chinensis Bunge plays an important role in inhibiting S. mutans growth and the number of biofilms. The results indicate that T. chinensis Bunge extract has good antibacterial and anti-biofilm activity on S. mutans. It has the potential to be developed for the treatment of caries in clinical application.

Extensive Profiling of Polyphenols from two Trollius Species Using a Combination of Untargeted and Targeted Approaches

Various species of globeflowers, belonging to the genus Trollius, have been extensively used in traditional Chinese medicine due to their anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antiviral properties, which are mainly attributed to their high polyphenol content. Differences in polyphenol composition, and abundances, will lead to varying treatment efficacies of globeflowers. Herein, we employ a combination of targeted and untargeted mass spectrometry (MS) approaches to characterize and quantify a comprehensive array of polyphenols, mainly including flavonoids and phenolic acids in two globeflower species commonly used in Chinese medicine, Trollius chinensis Bunge and Trollius ledebouri Reichb. In addition, free radical scavenging activity was investigated to evaluate the association between polyphenol composition and antioxidation capacity. Liquid chromatography (LC)-based separation and multiple-reaction-monitoring (MRM) transitions were optimized using a library of 78 polyphenol reference compounds to achieve absolute quantification on triple quadrupoles MS (QqQ). The analytical method was further expanded via high-resolution MS to provide relative quantitation of an additional 104 endogenous polyphenols in globeflowers not included in our reference library. Our results revealed stark differences in polyphenol content between T. chinensis and T. ledebouri, emphasizing the need for systematic characterization of polyphenol composition to ensure treatment efficacy and consistency in standardizing the use of globeflowers in Chinese medicine.

Antibacterial evaluation of plants extracts against ampicillin-resistant Escherichia coli (E. coli) by microcalorimetry and principal component analysis

Antibiotics abuse has caused increased bacterial resistance, which severely limits the application of antibiotics to the treatment of bacterial infections. Therefore, it is urgent to develop new antibacterial drugs through other sources. Dracontomelon dao (Blanco) Merr. & Rolfe (Ren Mianzi in Chinese) is a traditional medicinal material derived from Anacardiaceae with a long history of treating various infectious diseases, such as decubitus and skin ulcers. Recent research has indicated that different extracts from the leaves of D. dao, especially the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) fraction containing flavonoids and phenolic acids, exhibit potent antibacterial activities. In this research, the combined anti-drug-resistant bacterial activities of these active ingredients were investigated. Six samples (S1-S6) were obtained from the EtOAc fraction of D. dao leaves. Microcalorimetric measurements and principal component analysis were performed on the in vitro samples. The results showed that all six samples had notable antibacterial activities. Specifically, sample S6 exhibited a prominent antibacterial effect, with an IC50 value of 84.3 μg mL-1, which was significantly lower than that of other samples. The relative contents of main flavonoids and phenolic acids in S6 sample were confirmed by UPLC/Q-TOF-MS. In conclusion, sample S6 from the EtOAc fraction of D. dao leaves could be used as a potential antimicrobial resource in the treatment of infectious diseases. This work provides an insight into the effect of traditional Chinese medicine on drug-resistant bacteria. Moreover, the purification and characterization of the chemical compounds from the sample S6 deserve further analysis.

Racemic alkaloids from Macleaya cordata: structural elucidation, chiral resolution, and cytotoxic, antibacterial activities

Three pairs of new enantiomeric natural alkaloids (±)-macleayins C-E (1–3), together with five pairs of known racemic alkaloids (4–8), were isolated from the aerial parts of Macleaya cordata.